The AAWAA Women’s Advocate

In this episode, Martine and Liv look at prostitution through a second-wave, materialist feminist lens — and at why the shift to "sex work" language matters more than it might first appear. Drawing on Kathleen Barry, Carole Pateman and Andrea Dworkin, they trace the argument that prostitution is not a marginal issue but part of the basic infrastructure of patriarchy: a system through which men, as a class, buy sexual access to women and girls, as a class. They also ask the question that gets lost when the debate narrows to working conditions: should there be a market in women's bodies at all?This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

In this bonus episode, we share some of the audio of our appearance before the NSW Legislative Council’s inquiry into fertility support and assisted reproductive treatment. Presented under public interest, this recording lets you hear directly how we argued that surrogacy cannot be treated as routine ‘fertility support’, why Parliament’s first duty is to protect women from exploitation, and how MLCs engaged with our call for prohibition rather than expansion of surrogacy in New South Wales. Audio taken from NSW Parliamentary webcast, 21 April 2026, Select Committee on Fertility Support and Assisted Reproductive Treatment, shared in the public interest.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Last week the President of the Australian Human Rights Commission addressed the National Press Club. We were there — and we asked him why Parliament should extend the Commission's enforcement powers over women's organisations in the contested space of sex and gender, given that a Federal Court judgment just found legal error in how the Commission exercised its existing powers against the Lesbian Action Group. We asked about costs. We asked about proportionality. In this episode, we go through what he said, what he didn't say, and what Parliament should be asking.Donate to womensadvocacy.net:Account name: Affiliation of Australian Women’s Advocacy AlliancesAccount number: 04201471BSB: 325-185This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Before the NSW Legislative Council even asked its first question, we made a deliberate choice: to shift the entire frame of the hearing. In this short episode, Emma and Megan discuss the opening statement we delivered to the inquiry, and the political philosophy driving it.They explore what it means to say that parliamentarians hold power but not rights against the citizens they represent; why guardianship and paternalism are fundamentally different ideas, and why that distinction matters enormously in the surrogacy debate; and how accepting the framing of 'fertility support' stewardship quietly forecloses the most important question of all — whether this market should exist at all.If you have ever wondered why the opening move in an inquiry matters as much as the evidence that follows, this conversation explains it.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Megan unpack their recent evidence to the NSW Legislative Council inquiry on ‘fertility support’ and surrogacy. Drawing on AAWAA’s anchoring arguments, they explain why Parliament’s role is to guard women and children, not steward a fertility market; why surrogacy is structurally exploitative even when framed as ‘helping families’; and why lived experience alone cannot decide questions of law and policy. They explore the dangers of an arms race of competing stories, the state’s duties under international law, and what it really means to say that some markets – including surrogacy – should not exist at all.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

When a woman dies, her superannuation doesn't automatically go to her estate — it goes to whoever her super fund trustee decides, within rules that can force payment to a violent or controlling man. Emma and Lucy walk through AAWAA's submission to Treasury's consultation on stopping male perpetrators from inheriting women's super death benefits, and what reform actually needs to look likeThis podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Luci unpack AAWAA’s new submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, focusing on how violence against older women is made invisible in Australia. They explore economic and administrative violence in the age pension and homelessness systems, abuse and sexual assault in residential aged care, the erasure of male perpetrators in language and data, and why sex-based protections and rights for older women must be explicitly recognised in law and policy.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

In this first episode of The Unmoved Feminist, Martine and Liv dig into one of the most consequential shifts of the past two decades: the gradual displacement of sex by gender identity in law, policy and public debate. Drawing on the foundational work of Kate Millett, Shulamith Firestone and Christine Delphy, they trace the second-wave concept of women as a sex class — where it came from, what it explains, and why abandoning it doesn't advance equality for women but obscures the conditions that make struggle necessary. A grounding episode for listeners who can see something has gone wrong but haven't always had a framework to name it.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Repeat episode for the Easter holiday. Emma and Liv push back against the mischaracterisation of women's rights organisations advocating for sex-based protections as 'right-wing', 'reactionary', or 'extremist'. They trace the feminist lineage of our advocacy through second-wave traditions, materialist analysis, and campaigns against prostitution, surrogacy, pornography, and male violence. From 'forced alignment' tactics that delegitimise our positions, to the conflation of sex with gender identity in law and policy, Emma and Liv explain why defending female-only spaces, critiquing gender as hierarchy, and opposing exploitation of women's bodies remain core feminist concerns—and why reclaiming our political tradition is essential to protecting women's rights today.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Sue spotlight Local action with Dr Megan Blake, barrister for the Lesbian Action Group and president of the new YAEL Women’s Defence Guild. They discuss Megan’s commitment to material reality and accuracy over labels, her experience weathering public hostility while defending women’s sex-based protections and rights, and why YAEL was created to fund key legal cases so women are not bankrupted for defending female-only protections. Listeners hear how one woman’s principled legal work connects directly to local action and how we can support YAEL as it begins its work.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Amber discuss Victoria's Change or Suppression (Conversion) Practices Prohibition Act, which is currently under review by the Victorian Law Reform Commission. AAWAA supports the ban on gay conversion practices — but the evidence suggests the Act is producing serious unintended consequences in its application to gender identity. Clinicians are stepping back from treating gender-distressed young people. Parents face uncertainty about conversations with their own children. And same-sex attracted young people may be being steered away from the careful clinical exploration they need. Emma and Amber discuss what AAWAA submitted to the review, what the evidence shows, and what modest amendments could fix the problem without disturbing the law's core purpose.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Equality Australia has been ruled an advocacy body, knocked back for standard charity tax status, and then rescued with a bespoke DGR deal, vice‑regal patronage and a shield of secrecy. In this episode, Emma and Liv unpack how Equality Australia used Thorne Harbour Health’s DGR status, how the Albanese government is now moving to write Equality Australia into the tax law, how the Governor‑General’s patronage is being cited in the Giggle v Tickle appeal, and how Senate rules swiftly protected the vice‑regal office from criticism. They then walk through AAWAA’s FOI battle with the Governor‑General’s office and the FOI watchdog, showing how section 6A and the Kline decision are being stretched to keep women from seeing whether the Patronage Policy was ever properly applied.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

In this episode Emma and Suzi unpack the NCC 2025 preview’s new ‘all‑gender’ toilet option and what it really means for women’s access to safe, adequate facilities in public buildings. Drawing on AAWAA’s 2024 submission to the Australian Building Codes Board, we explain how the change allows a ‘constructive reduction’ in female‑only toilets, why all‑gender cubicles do not replace women’s toilets in practice, and how sanitary bin rules still quietly assume sex‑based needs. We also examine the consultation process itself – where women’s groups engaged in detail but industry‑backed proposals prevailed – and outline what ministers, regulators, and listeners can do now to keep female‑only toilets on the agenda.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Amber examine the CEDAW Committee’s advance observations on the Netherlands, asking what it means when a UN women’s rights body talks about “sex work”, “safe and legal workplaces, including home‑based sex work”, and even “minor sex workers”. They discuss how this language sits with CEDAW, CRC, Palermo and the 1949 Convention, why it signals institutional drift away from sex‑based protections and rights, and what an abolitionist, treaty‑consistent approach to prostitution and trafficking should look like—for the Netherlands and for Australia.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Suzi examine the Auditor-General's comprehensive performance audit of age pension administration in light of evidence AAWAA submitted to the Australian National Audit Office one year earlier. The audit validates systemic failures – $5 billion in incorrect payments, processing delays up to 4.2 years, only 48.55 per cent of phone calls answered – but contains no sex-disaggregated analysis despite women constituting 55.55 per cent of recipients. They discuss specific cases of older women dismissed, delayed, doubted, and subjected to greater scrutiny than male counterparts, and why gender-neutral reform recommendations will fail to address how women experience administrative failures differently. Without making women visible in data and analysis, pension system reform will continue to assume a recipient who does not exist.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma is joined by Megan to unpack a significant development for womens advocacy in Australia: a formal meeting between AAWAA, Feminist Legal Clinic, the Coalition of Activist Lesbians, and the Australian Human Rights Commission. They discuss why womens organisations pushed to meet with the President, the Sex Discrimination Commissioner and the Human Rights Commissioner; what they presented about Australia’s de facto sex and gender framework; and how concerns about female‑only spaces, lesbian‑only organising, and CEDAW‑compliant consultation were received. The episode explores ‘strategic patience’, section 11 inquiry powers, and what it means for womens groups to move from sending submissions to being recognised as stakeholders inside the national human rights body.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Luci examine violence and discrimination affecting lesbian and bisexual women in Australia. They unpack how governance failures themselves constitute discrimination: the systematic exclusion of lesbian women from policy processes on sex self-identification laws, exemptions under discrimination law, and school policies. They detail the Lesbian Action Group's failed exemption application to the AHRC, institutional capture by LGBTIQ+ organisations claiming to represent lesbian interests, and how lesbians are denied the right to organise publicly as women – while gay men and transgender groups operate without obstruction. This is about fundamental human rights violations through governance failure.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Lucy unpack violence against mothers – a form of sex-based harm that remains dangerously invisible in international policy. They examine three interconnected mechanisms: reproductive coercion, weaponisation of children against mothers, and systematic economic subordination through the motherhood penalty. They detail how institutional actors enable rather than prevent this violence, and outline comprehensive recommendations for legislative and policy reform to protect mothers' safety, autonomy, and economic security.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Megan unpack the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism Bill 2026 – a framework that criminalises organisational membership based on a vague "unacceptable risk" standard, without procedural fairness, and with a 72-hour consultation window. They examine the constitutional vulnerabilities: the absence of evidence that organisational criminalisation is necessary, the deliberate removal of procedural safeguards, the risk of retrospective criminalisation for lawful conduct, and the chilling effect on women's political advocacy. This is what happens when serious legislation meets broken process.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

AAWAA's Christmas Wrap for 2025: Emma hosts Martine, Luci, and Suzi as they look back on a transformative year for AAWAA. They discuss coordinated national campaigns on sex self-ID and surrogacy prohibition, groundbreaking UN submissions on women's human rights, the 2025 federal election push to restore sex-based protections, international momentum against surrogacy, how we've built genuine cross-state collaboration on policy and strategy, and what it means to organise as feminists across Australia. Serious, strategic and upbeat – this is how to build a real movement.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

On 18 December, feminist organisations attended an ALRC roundtable on surrogacy law reform – and witnessed an independent review apparently structurally compromised. Emma and Amber unpack the governance failures: how the ALRC deflected legal questions about abolition, moved process concerns into private emails, conflated having women with representing women's interests, curated 'lived experience' to exclude voices that oppose surrogacy, and set a submission deadline the day after the roundtable. We discuss what the ALRC must do to retain credibility – and why it matters.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Amber discuss the Australian Law Reform Commission's review of surrogacy laws, examining why the roundtable with feminist organisations is scheduled for 18 December—one day before the submission deadline for feedback on its discussion paper—and why this timing exposes deeper governance failures. They unpack the advisory committee's structural conflicts of interest, the lack of early consultation with abolitionist women's organisations, and how the review breaches CEDAW compliance obligations. Most critically, they explain why AAWAA is attending despite these failures: to place governance concerns formally on the record and refuse to negotiate away the principle that surrogacy must be abolished. Because the integrity of law reform processes matters as much as the policy content itself.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

In this episode, Emma is joined by Lucy and Liv to discuss their formal submission to the statutory review of sexual consent laws. In 2021, NSW introduced landmark "affirmative consent" reforms. But four years on, are they actually delivering justice for women? The team unpacks why the current legal definition of consent—"free and voluntary agreement"—is fundamentally flawed in a patriarchy. The discussion explores how the law fails to recognise the reality of coercive control, why the "reasonable steps" test still allows men to negotiate away a woman's "no," and why true affirmative consent requires flipping the presumption of male sexual access.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Liv expose why consultation alone cannot satisfy Australia's obligations under CEDAW. Governments across Australia are treating consultation as political cover for decisions already made—but CEDAW demands something far more rigorous: mandatory impact assessment. They break down what the Convention actually requires (Articles 2, 3, 5, and 7), explain how General Recommendation No. 28 shifts the focus from process to results, and document the systematic failures in NSW, Western Australia, and Queensland where women were excluded and impact assessment never occurred. Most critically, they outline a four-step legislative framework—from legislated impact statements to independent oversight—that would restore women to the centre of policy affecting our sex-based protections and rights. Because governments can no longer vote claiming ignorance once impact is published.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

In this episode of the Women's Advocate, Emma and Megan discuss the ABC’s relationship with ACON, the LGBTQ+ advocacy organisation behind the Australian Workplace Equality Index (AWEI). Following the National Press Club address, they explore ABC Managing Director Hugh Marks’s responses—both publicly and in follow-up questioning—on governance, editorial independence, transparency, and the influence of advocacy relationships on media coverage. The conversation covers recent public scrutiny, gaps in ABC reporting acknowledged by its own Media Watch program, and why advocates are calling for an independent parliamentary audit of the ABC–ACON connection. The discussion also examines the BBC’s experience with Stonewall, what it can teach Australian media, and the next steps for public accountability. For full documentation, the latest petition, and further analysis, visit womensadvocacy.net.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

We unpack revelations from a Freedom of Information release showing how the Australian Government works behind the scenes to push back against independent UN scrutiny of our nation's women's rights record. Emma and Megan discuss why the Government is actively countering the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, how Australia is now treating women's sex-based protections under CEDAW, and the troubling blurring of lines between government priorities and UN committee independence. From debate over surrogacy to the erasure of sex-based rights, this episode explores what is really at stake when governments try to control the international conversation on women and girls.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Liv push back against the mischaracterisation of women's rights organisations advocating for sex-based protections as 'right-wing', 'reactionary', or 'extremist'. They trace the feminist lineage of our advocacy through second-wave traditions, materialist analysis, and campaigns against prostitution, surrogacy, pornography, and male violence. From 'forced alignment' tactics that delegitimise our positions, to the conflation of sex with gender identity in law and policy, Emma and Liv explain why defending female-only spaces, critiquing gender as hierarchy, and opposing exploitation of women's bodies remain core feminist concerns—and why reclaiming our political tradition is essential to protecting women's rights today.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Megan unpack shocking FOI evidence showing systematic exclusion of women's groups from policies affecting our sex-based protections and rights. Whilst LGBTQIA+ organisations receive formal advisory positions, paid travel, and access to draft policies months before public consultation, women's groups scramble to respond to four-week consultation windows—if we discover them at all. From the 2013 SDA amendments that introduced 'gender identity' to the 2023 LGBTIQA+ Health Action Plan, the pattern is documented and damning. This is a clear breach of CEDAW Article 7—and it's producing bad policy with real harms for women and girls. Read the full FOI analysis and our demands at womensadvocacy.net.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

In this episode, Emma and Martine explore the Northern Territory’s landmark decision to ban all male prisoners from women’s jails—an “on my watch” promise from Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro that has set a new national benchmark for protecting women in custody. We unpack two alarming incidents—a Victorian child sex offender housed at Dame Phyllis Frost Centre and Katie’s alleged assault at South Australia’s Port Augusta Prison—to show how sex self-identification laws have left female-only spaces dangerously exposed. We outline practical steps premiers and chief ministers can take—legislative amendments, ministerial directives, immediate placement audits and explicit sex-based placement rules—to ensure women’s safety and dignity are enshrined in law, not left to shifting policies.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Megan examine how forty years after the Sex Discrimination Act was passed to implement CEDAW, confusion over sex-based protections is leaving women's services, sporting bodies, and advocacy groups without clear guidance. They explore the AHRC's rejection of lesbian exemption applications and institutional drift that prioritises other considerations over women's sex-based rights. The episode sets out the Commission's unused section 11 powers to inquire, examine, and report on human rights inconsistencies—and why Parliament must act if the AHRC won't restore legal certainty for women's protections.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Sue unpack Janet Fraser’s journey from second‑wave roots and lesbian organising in the ’90s to founding Joyous Birth after a traumatic hospital transfer, being branded for saying ‘birthing women’, and finishing law to fight for female‑only spaces and legal clarity.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma hosts Amber and Martine to unpack Western Australia’s surrogacy ‘reform’: how an industry‑led process sidelined women’s voices, abolished ex‑ante safeguards, and bundled ART with surrogacy to fast‑track a market‑friendly law. Amber lays out the process failures and what the Bill changes; Martine maps the advocacy strategy in the Council—committee referral, reinstating pre‑conception approvals, raising surrogate protections, and splitting ART from surrogacy—so lawmakers can restore scrutiny and protect women and girls.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma hosts Amber and Lucy for a ground-level look at how exclusion of women from consultation is producing bad law across Australia. From WA’s industry‑driven ART and surrogacy bill and fast‑tracked sex self‑ID law, to NSW’s predetermined ‘equality’ process and bundling ART with surrogacy, to QLD’s token consultation windows, they unpack why this breaches CEDAW Article 7 and ICCPR participation rights, and how it leads to regulatory capture, legal uncertainty, and harm to women and girls. The episode sets out concrete fixes: separate surrogacy from ART, end curated stakeholder lists, restore independent reviews and full committee scrutiny, and centre women’s advocacy in every stage of law‑making.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Megan discuss AAWAA's direct questioning of the Sex Discrimination Commissioner at the National Press Club about her powers, obligations, and the systematic exclusion of women's advocacy groups from sex and gender policy consultations. They explore the Commissioner's claim that CEDAW has been reinterpreted to include all 'versions' of woman, the lack of public accountability around this change, and why women's sexed-based protections and rights cannot be quietly displaced through administrative redefinition. This episode examines the Commission's statutory duties under Section 11 of the AHRC Act and calls for genuine consultation with women's organisations on policies that directly affect us.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Luci examine the Women’s Action Alliance Tasmania’s call on the Tasmanian Government for the abolition of prostitution and urgent law reform. They unpack the landmark UN report on prostitution as violence, discuss the ongoing harm and demand created by advertising in Tasmanian media, and explain the link between prostitution and the institutional child sexual abuse exposed by the state’s recent inquiry.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Amber put the Australian Human Rights Commission under the spotlight, questioning its shift away from meaningful, sexed-based protections for women and girls. From legal battles and lost consultation to confusion for services and sport, they expose how policy changes and reinterpretations have left women’s rights on shaky ground. Is Parliament the only answer for restoring clarity and accountability?This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

In this episode, Emma and Sue explore the life of Merike Johnson—a refugee, scientist and feminist trailblazer—tracing her journey from a post-war German camp to leading women’s activism in Australia, building refuges, challenging discriminatory laws, and warning of the dangers when ‘sex’ is erased from science, statistics, or language, all while inspiring others with her resilience, humour and focus on women's rights.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Luci examine Scotland’s pioneering Prostitution (Offences and Support) Bill and what it means for the rights, safety, and dignity of women and girls everywhere. They provide a serious, evidence-driven analysis of why shifting criminal accountability to sex buyers, restoring justice for women criminalised by exploitation, and mandating state assistance are vital reforms. Drawing on AAWAA’s submission to the Scottish Parliament and the call for stronger action in Australia—including a National Apology—this discussion sets out a feminist blueprint for principled law reform, survivor support, and lasting change.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

In this episode, Emma and Amber examine the government’s claims about “engaging stakeholders” and reveal how those of us most affected—women and girls—are routinely left out. We unpack the consequences of this exclusion, explore recent legal and policy developments eroding sexed-based protections, and call for a return to genuine consultation that puts our voices at the heart of decision-making. Join us for clear evidence, sharp analysis, and a rallying cry for real representation in women’s policy.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Megan take listeners inside our coalition’s major submission to the Universal Periodic Review, exposing how the Australian government is erasing women’s sex-based rights while claiming progress. Why are legal protections for women and girls being rolled back behind closed doors? What’s missing from Australia’s official human rights report, and what must change to put women back at the centre of law and policy?This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Lucy look at the dangers of merging Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ARTs) with surrogacy under a single legislative umbrella. They unpack the crucial differences between medical treatment for infertility and the ethical, legal, and women's rights minefield of contracting out women’s bodies. What gets lost when policy-makers blur these lines—and who stands to lose the most?This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Lucy examine the urgent issues shaping mental health and wellbeing for women and girls across New South Wales. They explore why current policies too often fail to recognise our unique needs, highlighting the erosion of female-only services, rising rates of violence and eating disorders, and the troubling impact of recent legislative changes.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Sue highlight Isla MacGregor, a front-line campaigner since the early 1990s, whose work with Whistleblowers Australia and activism against corruption and child abuse have shaped Tasmania’s feminist movement. Isla’s leadership in launching the Coalition for Inquiry into Child Sex Abuse and founding Women Speak Tasmania demonstrates her unyielding focus on responsibility, cooperation, and organisation.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Amber and Martine join Emma to expose the deep flaws in Western Australia’s Assisted Reproductive Technology and Surrogacy Bill 2025. Amber outlines how the Bill erases crucial differences between surrogacy and assisted reproduction, silencing women’s voices in favour of commercial interests. Martine shares WAWAA’s advocacy strategy—including emailing every single WA MP individually—which resulted in immediate engagement from parliamentarians. Together, they make the abolitionist case against surrogacy and demand genuine scrutiny, independent review, and the central involvement of women’s advocacy in all lawmaking affecting women’s rights.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Suzi break down the ongoing debate over ‘all-gender’ toilet facilities in the National Construction Code, revealing how small policy changes can threaten women’s rights to safety and dignity in public spaces. They discuss AAWAA’s detailed submission to the Australian Building Codes Board, dive into the confusion created by shifting from ‘sex’ to ‘gender’ language, and explain why the current consultation remains unresolved.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma chats with Lucy to unpack the NSW Women’s Action Alliance submission to the state’s Anti-Discrimination Act review. They discuss why legal clarity about ‘sex’ is vital, what’s at stake if anti-discrimination law moves to a ‘gender’ model, and how administrative shortcuts put women and girls at risk of losing crucial protections in healthcare, sport, crisis services, and public life. Drawing on both international obligations and hard lessons from recent NSW legislation, Emma and Lucy challenge the Law Reform Commission to resist expedient fixes and commit to robust sexed-based protections and rights for women.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Amber call on the Prime Minister and the Minister for Women to provide a National Apology for all women and girls harmed, criminalised, and stigmatised through prostitution in Australia. Speaking as part of the strongest feminist coalition in the country, they lay out a clear plan — the Australian Abolition Approach (‘Triple A’) for Absolute Protections — calling for criminalisation of buyers, full decriminalisation and support for those exploited, trauma-informed services, survivor-led policy, and national consistency.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Suzi unpack the NSW Law Reform Commission's current review of the Anti-Discrimination Act, with a special focus on government guidelines for sex and gender data. They explore why the Australian Government Guidelines on the Recognition of Sex and Gender are administrative tools—not laws—and how the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 remains the definitive authority, especially when it comes to exemptions for single-sex spaces. Drawing on recent UK court cases and policy reviews, Emma and Suzi explain why legal clarity matters and how statutory protections for women must not be diluted by government policy shifts.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

In this episode, Emma and Martine take you deep into the heart of a significant legal battle — the Tickle v Giggle case — exploring who counts as a woman and who can access women-only spaces in Australia. They unpack the debates between Equality Australia advocating for definitions that include males as lesbians based on gender identity, and the Lesbian Action Group standing for biological sex and lesbian attraction as the basis for defining women’s spaces, and women. Along the way, they navigate the evolving legal landscape shaped by the Sex Discrimination Act, the crucial principle of legality, and what the upcoming Full Court decision may mean for women and the future of female-only spaces.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.

Emma and Lucy unpack the NSW Women’s Action Alliance’s latest submission on hate speech law reform. They explore why the incitement to violence threshold is so important, raise concerns about making “hatred” a crime without clear limits, and highlight the current gap in sex-based legal protections for women. Drawing on real-world examples and international context, the episode explores how vague or overbroad laws could chill debate, compromise women’s rights, and undermine Australia’s international obligations.This podcast provides general information and opinion only and does not constitute legal advice. Listeners should seek independent, professional legal advice before acting on any matters discussed. The hosts and AAWAA accept no liability for decisions made based on this content.